Ask the Doctor: Platelet Rich Plasma

A new procedure, called platelet rich plasma therapy (PRP), uses the natural growth factors in your own blood to stimulate cell growth and collagen production. The procedure has been used for years by orthopedic doctors to help joint and sports injuries heal faster. And as a cosmetic treatment, it has the potential to improve the appearance of damaged skin and stimulate hair growth. In fact, PRP’s unique ability to turn back the clock on the body’s own healing process has earned it the nickname “the vampire facial.”
Here’s what you need to know . . .
PRP uses the body’s own healing power to rejuvenate skin and hair.
“This procedure offers anti-aging and skin rejuvenating benefits in a surprisingly natural way,” says NDDA physician Dr. Mary Hurley. It stimulates your body’s natural repair mechanisms in the skin to heal and rejuvenate quicker. “The procedure was originally derived from orthopedic procedures that injected PRP to increase the natural growth factors at a localized injury – helping joints recover faster from surgery or sports injury. “A similar process is used to inject platelet rich plasma into facial skin and the natural growth factors that promote the healing in joints also work to firm and repair the skin, by stimulating collagen production and cellular renewal” says Dr. Hurley.
The procedure works like this: first the patient’s own blood is drawn and spun in a centrifuge to separate the plasma, containing platelets and a variety of other growth factors, yielding a nutrient rich broth. Then, that enhanced plasma is injected back into the body.
As a cosmetic procedure, the therapy delivers platelet rich plasma through microneedling or facial injections, infusing skin with its own regenerative natural growth factor.
While it can look extreme – in some ways the PRP lift is actually a more natural procedure than many on the market today because it uses the body’s own innate healing ability to obtain the kind of noticeable improvements usually reserved for injectables. That’s because platelets and their growth factors will naturally migrate to any site of injury in the body and immediately begin to work on promoting strengthening and healing.
“It’s your body’s most recognizable growth factor, and for that reason, it’s very good at improving collagen production and the texture of the skin,” say Dr. Hurley. “As soon as the skin starts to heal, patients notice a firming and tightening,” she added.
In addition to skin rejuvenation, platelet rich plasma can also be used to treat hair loss in both men and women. The same principles that help PRP to heal joints faster and firm and tighten the skin, also help to boost hair follicle production when injected into the scalp. The nutrient rich growth factors actually stimulate the hair to grow in stronger and thicker.
“It’s a really exciting development because this procedure uses the body’s very own growth factors and nutrients to do exactly what they are designed to do: working to rejuvenate and heal the targeted area.”
NDDA is currently offering PRP procedures to patients. For maximum benefit, the process is usually completed every 6 to 8 weeks for a series of treatments.

Dr. Mary Hurley
Dr. Mary Hurley, President of North Dallas Dermatology, is a board-certified dermatologist and graduate of Vanderbilt University in 1992 with a Bachelor of Arts, cum laude. . . . Read more »